Tuesday, May 15, 2012

My Offer of $100K to Peter Beinart

My Offer of $100K to Peter Beinart

By Ronn Torossian

I am prepared to make a 6 figure donation to J Street and/or Peter Beinart. My $100,000 gift comes with a simple condition – they have to speak to Arabs as they do to the Jewish community. Among my objections to these misguided peace-seekers is that they preach almost exclusively to the Jewish community and Western audiences about peace in the Middle East – and are ignoring the need to address Arab communities in their countries, whose participation is of course necessary to achieve the peace that they so clamor for. I was inspired to make this offer after reading Peter Beinart’s ‘Open Zion’ blog introduction that speaks of “official Jewish discourse” but says nothing of “official Arab discourse.”

For the challenge, they must pick three Middle Eastern Arab countries as well as Gaza, and speak in open advertised forums including Mosques and Universities. They must also travel without security as they do in Israel and Jewish communities. Upon completion of this tour I will sign the check, which I am prepared to place in escrow today with attorneys. J Street President Mr. Jeremy Ben Ami and Mr. Peter Beinart simply need to preach their message of co-existence in the Arab world.

While these American Jewish left-wing extremists have made a lot of noise in the United States about the danger of the “settlements” and the Netanyahu government, some even calling for the boycott of Jewish goods made in the West Bank, they seem to have completely ignored the other parties of the Arab Israeli conflict – and that doesn’t seem right. So I offer a dare to these so-called pro-Israel activists to proclaim their Zionism in Arab countries, speak of their “Jewish values,” deliver the same talks as they would in front of Jewish audiences. I believe they won’t – because they likely would not make it home alive. Beinart has foolishly said: “Prime Minister Netanyahu distrusts Obama because Obama reminds him of leftist Jews − the Jews that Netanyahu detests, the kind of Jews that Netanyahu once famously told an Israeli rabbi ‘have forgotten what it is to be Jews.’” So I encourage Mr. Beinart to travel the Arab countries – whose hostility Israel’s Prime Minister faces daily – and explain “what it is to be a Jew.”

“What really struck me when I read his writings and that of his father Benzion, and then about the Revisionist tradition, is this belief that the world is a very nasty place, and the Jews are in danger because they don’t recognize its nastiness….We’ve got to become like everybody else,” wrote Beinart. I am a proud product of the Zionist Revisionist movement – formerly serving as National President of the Betar Movement, which was founded by Ze’ev Jabotinsky, and it saddens me to see people like Beinart and Ben-Ami neglect to notice the unfortunate nastiness that does exist in the world, especially the desire of many in the Middle East to destroy the Jewish people.

Mr. Beinart and Mr. Ben-Ami, you attack the Jewish state, but ignore Arab belligerence – is that not a racist approach if you truly seek peace? This Zionist Revisionist is offering you the chance to spread your message – will you accept? Jabotinsky wrote in a 1929 essay called “Peace”:

“A noisy whining is now being set up by a chorus of ‘peace seekers’ who aim to achieve (by preaching exclusively to Jews) conciliation with the Arabs. It is difficult to free oneself from a feeling of disgust. On the morrow of a slaughter so mean and so foul – let us confess our sins and ask that they not beat us again.”

He also wrote in 1929, “The Jewish people – all of us, 100 percent want peace” – and the same holds true today. To me it seems that the interests of Beinart and J Street are focused on weakening Israel, but if they are indeed so concerned with re-conciliation with the Arabs they need to stop preaching exclusively to Jews. If the Arab world wanted peace, there would be peace. If Mr. Beinart and Mr. Ben Ami feel I am wrong then they will surely take up my challenge, right – How about it?

Ronn Torossian is the CEO of 5WPR, a Top 25 PR Agency and author of Amazon best-selling PR book “For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands, and Deliver Results with Game-Changing Public Relations,” which is available for purchase here.